| Maurice Richard | |
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 Maurice Richard poster |
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| Directed by | Charles Binamé |
| Produced by | Daniel Louis Denise Robert |
| Written by | Ken Scott |
| Starring | Roy Dupuis Julie LeBreton Stephen McHattie |
| Cinematography | Pierre Gill |
| Editing by | Michel Arcand |
| Distributed by | Alliance Atlantis |
| Release date(s) | 25 November, 2005 (Québec) |
| Running time | 124 mins |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | French, English |
| Budget | 8,000,000 |
| IMDb profile | |
Maurice Richard is a French language Canadian biopic about legendary ice hockey player Maurice "The Rocket" Richard. It was released in English Canada as The Rocket: The Maurice Richard Story. It was released in the United States as The Rocket: The Legend of Rocket Richard and was distributed by Palm Pictures. It stars Roy Dupuis in the title role and was directed by Charles Binamé. It features appearances by National Hockey League players Vincent Lecavalier, Mike Ricci, Sean Avery, Philippe Sauvé, Stéphane Quintal, Ian Laperrière and Pascal Dupuis.
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Synopsis
The film depicts an era widely considered as a corner-stone of the NHL's history. It shows the life of The Rocket beginning with his years as a teenager, his ascension to the Canadiens, up to The Richard Riot, showing a full spectrum of Richard's career. It ends the year before Richard brought Montréal to an unrivalled record of five Stanley Cup Championships in a row.
Production
The dialogue and hockey scenes were produced to be as true to reality as possible; they were reviewed by Richard himself before he died and also by his wife, his children, and Dick Irvin Jr's written and recorded testimonies and memories about his father and reporters from the era. The events presented as facts and the dialogue have been researched thoroughly to present the most factually accurate film possible. Many sources were consulted for facts within the movie, including family, friends, the public, and the media recording those events, various journalists reporting on the events of that time, Richard's barber, previous teams in the juvenile league (he played for five different teams in different leagues). The film was shot in Québec by Cinémaginaire for a budget of (CAD) $8,000,000 and distributed by Alliance Atlantis and Odeon.
Distribution
Maurice Richard was first released in French throughout Québec in November 2005, then throughout Canada with English subtitles in April 2006. The distribution rights were marketed at the Cannes Film Festival by Telefilm Canada, whose press release of 30 May, 2006, reports that "Cinémaginaire producer Denise Robert inked deals for The Rocket (Maurice Richard) with five Scandinavian countries: Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Denmark." It was released in the United States as The Rocket: The Legend of Rocket Richard and was distributed by Palm Pictures.
Awards and recognition
The film was nominated in 13 categories for the 27th Genie Awards in 2007 and won nine of the 22 awards handed out (the wins are in bold below):
- Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role: Roy Dupuis
- Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role: Julie LeBreton
- Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role: Stephen McHattie
- Best Direction: Charles Binamé
- Best Art Direction/Production Design: Michel Proulx
- Best Cinematography: Pierre Gill
- Best Costume Design: Francesca Chamberland
- Best Editing: Michel Arcand
- Best Sound Editing: Claude Beaugrand, Olivier Calvert, Jérôme Décarie, Natalie Fleurant, Francine Poirier
- Best Overall Sound: Claude Hazanavicius, Claude Beaugrand, Luc Boudrias, Bernard Gariépy Strobl
- Best Motion Picture: Denise Robert, Daniel Louis
- Best Original Screenplay: Ken Scott
- Best Music – Original Score: Michel Cusson
It was also nominated for a Jutra Award in 14 categories, including Best Actor for Roy Dupuis; but it did not receive the award.
References
- "Arts & Entertainment: 'C.R.A.Z.Y.,' 'Rocket' sweep Jutra award nominations" at CBC Arts 2 Feb. 2006.
- "Cannes 2006: Canadian films and new market initiative forge ahead at the world’s most prestigious film festival". Press Release. Online posting. Telefilm Canada 3 May 2006.
- Harris, Bill. "The Rocket." Online posting. Winnipeg Sun 21 Apr. 2006.
- Lebrun, Pierre. "NHL players bring authenticity to The Rocket." London Free Press 21 Apr. 2006.
- Pender, Tracy Nita. "Congorama closing Director's Fortnight." Online posting. Playback 15 May 2006.
- "'The Rocket' captures Quebec's 1950s climate." Online posting on CTV television network 10 Apr. 2006. Features links to video clips from the Toronto première of the English-subtitled version The Rocket (Canada AM).
- Stone, Jay. "The Rocket's Red Glare." online posting. Ottawa Citizen 21 Apr. 2006.
- "Telefilm Canada helps Canadians do brisk business at Cannes 2006." Press Release. Online posting. Telefilm Canada 30 May 2006.
- "Thin off-ice drama prevents blastoff for Rocket." Online posting. Metro (Canada) ("News") 21 Apr. 2006.
